Prayer Alert (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)

The Herald Publication Permit

The Herald Publication Permit

Report

On Tuesday, 30 Dec. 2008, the Home Ministry approved the publication’s annual printing permit but with conditions attached (NST, Jan 1, p.10). The conditions are:-

  • To cease publication of the Herald in Bahasa Malaysia until the court decides on its move to seek a declaratory relief that it is entitled to use the word "Allah";
  • That the publication can only be sold in churches; and
  • That it prints clearly on the cover that the paper is only meant for Christians.

On 3 Jan., NST reported that the Roman Catholic Church of Malaysia has rejected the three conditions. In the same report, Archbishop Tan Sri Murphy Pakiam was quoted as saying with regards to the first condition, "We are unable to see how these two matters are related. Even if the court dismissed our application for judicial review, that has no bearing on the publication in Bahasa Malaysia."

The Archbishop added, "Connecting the matter of the publication in Bahasa Malaysia with the determination of the judicial review proceedings is not only grossly unreasonable, irrational and illegal but also reeks of ill-will and bad faith in that this condition serves as a form of retribution or punishment on account of our filing the judicial review."

On 7 Jan., The Malaysian Insider reported that The Catholic Lawyer's Society of Kuala Lumpur claimed that the Home Ministry's decision to ban the Bahasa Malaysia edition of the Herald was unconstitutional (see http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/index.php/malaysia/15269). The Society's President said that "Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar's decision to bar the Malay edition inside the weekly paper contravened Article 3(1), 10(1)(a), 11(1) and (3) of the Constitution which 'grants the right to freely practise one's religion, the general freedom of speech and expression and the right of every person and religious group to propagate and manage its own religious affairs' ".

As a consequence, the Society claimed that the Minister was effectively denying some 750,000 people the right to religious instructions. It has been reported that the publisher of the Herald and the Archbishop planned to take the matter to court if the matter was not resolved amicably.

Since then, the star online has reported that the Home Ministry had never prohibited the use of Bahasa Malaysia in the Roman Catholic Church’s publication, The Herald (see http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/1/10/nation/2988525&sec=nation). The Ministry's Quran Publication Control and Text Division Secretary, Che Din Yusoh, in a statement on 11 Jan. said, "The ministry is only against the use of the word 'Allah' to refer to God. The correct and appropriate translation for God in Bahasa Malaysia or Melayu is 'Tuhan' ".

Note

It appears that the Government is tightening up on the publication of Christian materials in Bahasa Malaysia for fear that this may cause confusion to the various adherence and cause racial disharmony. This latest decision by the Government has certainly not gone down well with the Catholic Church of Malaysia and they are now considering another suit.

The views given by Minister in the Prime Minister Department Datuk Seri Dr. Ahmad Zahid Hamidi "that the Bible cannot be translated into Bahasa Malaysia" reflects this fear (see http://www.utusan.com.my/utusan/info.asp?y=2008&dt=1231&pub=Utusan_Malaysia&sec=Dalam_Negeri&pg=dn_05.htm). Whether the statement by the Minister has any relation to the issuing of the annual publication permit of the Herald with conditions is a matter of conjecture. The concern for the Christian community must surely be this – the prohibition from using the word 'Allah' even before the decision of the courts is grossly unfair and is an infringement of our fundamental liberties.

The Government has consistently maintained that Bahasa Malaysia is our national language and constantly promotes its use within all walks of life in society. Yet when it comes to reading materials or scriptures containing the word 'Allah', it is not allowed. The latest statement by the ministry’s Quran Publication Control and Text Division Secretary has also caused further confusion to the issue. In such circumstance, it is no wonder the Catholic Church has said that they would continue to use the word ‘Allah in their publication while its suit is still in the hands of the courts.

Suggested Prayer Points

  1. God will intervene to ensure that good sense will prevail and that a fair and equitable outcome will emerge;
  2. The Government will respect the rights of the people for religious freedom and expression as enshrined in the Federal Constitution; and
  3. Wisdom for our Christian leaders as they deliberate and find an amicable as well as a permanent lasting solution to this present state of affairs, which is causing great confusion to the public and adherence of the various faiths.

NECF Malaysia
14 January 2009



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